


Stranded at Sevastopol

by AnxiousPeaches



Category: Alien: Isolation (Video Game), Dead by Daylight (Video Game)
Genre: Angst, Body Horror, Developing Relationship, F/M, Horror, One Shot, Outer Space, Xenomorphs (Alien)
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-04-24
Updated: 2018-04-24
Packaged: 2019-04-27 12:02:08
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 1
Words: 7,907
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14424996
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/AnxiousPeaches/pseuds/AnxiousPeaches
Summary: While on his way to a new colony, Jake Park finds himself stranded at Sevastopol station after his passenger ship had to take an emergency stop. A fateful bump-in with fellow colonist Claudette Morel connects the two of them. However, the week-long delay may not be a simple as they first thought. When an emergency lock-down takes place across the station, Jake Park realizes things are not all that they seem on the isolated station.





	Stranded at Sevastopol

Stranded at Sevastopol

  
I stepped out into a sea of people filling the overcrowded check-in area. Sevastopol was the last stop before I’d finally reach the planet Foxbel. Many of us were angry when we heard the news that we would have to make an emergency visit there. The 18 kilometer-wide station was infamous for its crime rates and failing economy. Everyone knew Sevastopol, soon to be shut down within the year, had become a wasteland of mismanagement. _Even my father, with all his money, said he couldn’t pay his way to save this station._

We first met on Sevastopol when she bumped into me as soon as we docked. She seemed disoriented, thanks to the cryosleep. The ship that dropped us off had over a hundred colonists, all eager to get to Foxbel. Unfortunately, something hit the ship and captain thought it would be too dangerous to attempt the trip to Foxbel. We evacuated onto Sevastopol with the promise that a second ship would come get us in a week. _I better be out of here before any other ships arrive._

“Sorry,” she whispered so quietly I almost didn't hear it over the crowd of passengers. They instructed us to head to the check-in station and then the baggage claim. Yet, for whatever reason, she headed in the opposite direction. In any other situation, I would have let her figure out the mistake on her own. I didn’t like interacting with people if I could help it. Yet, the way she moved through the crowd made me worry. I thought she might be on the verge of passing out -- a common symptom of cryosleep.

“Hey, wait,” I called out to her, pushing past the crowd of irritated and tired people. She had an oversized blue cardigan on and she kept squeezing the fabric of the sleeves that were much too long. A tinge of pink flushed her umber skin.

“You just got off the ship right?” I asked and she nodded. “You need to check in over there.”

“Oh,” she spoke, out of breath. “Is that where it is? Thanks.”  Behind her thick-framed glasses I could see her eyes watering.

“I don’t want to seem rude, but are you feeling alright?” I asked.

“Uh, not really,” she admitted.

“Let me help you check in and then we can find you a medical bay,” I offered. We didn’t say much else to each other for the rest of the check-in process.

They assigned each passenger a temporary apartment. Sevastopol had lost about fifty percent of its citizens in the past year, which left a lot of the housing empty. I heard rumors that many people remained on the station because of the perfect opportunity for illegal trading. That, and the high crime rate might have fed into my worry for the woman in front of me.

She introduced herself as we walked to the baggage claim. “My names Claudette Morel, by the way,” she said with a smile.

“Jake Park,” I nodded. Bags rode along a circular conveyor belt. Passengers plucked them up one by one as we waited for ours to appear.

“So you’re going to Foxbel too, I assume?” She asked.

I nodded. “Are you joining the Aeternitas colony or the Magni colony?” Foxbel had two new colonies emerging. Aeternitas was being built in a temperate climate with lots of forests. Magni, already well established, settled in an arid, desert region. I didn’t want to live in a place that was already built. Aeternitas would be more dangerous since it was so new, but the hard work would be more rewarded.

“I’m joining the Aeternitas, of course,” she said. “The idea of living in a desert didn’t sound appealing to me.”

“Same,” I said. _It would be too easy to track me down in Magni anyway._ I spotted my bag and grabbed it as it passed by. "The brochure won me over with all the nature photos."

She was the one who suggested we exchange contact info. I thought I would spend my week alone in my apartment but she insisted we meet up again. Later that evening we met in the food court at one of the few remaining restaurants left on the station. My plan was to humor her for an hour and then excuse myself.

I found out that, when she wasn’t suffering from cryosleep sickness, she was quite a talkative person. There was no kind way to put it. She rambled. A lot. For the first few minutes, I thought I was going to regret everything. Then I started to actually listen.

Unlike others, she didn’t speak just to fill up space. There was no mindless small talk. No boring formalities I usually endured from the business associates my father shoved at me. She started talking about her home, her family, and all her interests. The anxious rambling turned into a free-flowing conversation.

It ended up we had a lot more in common than I thought. She, like me, admired nature. She had a bachelors degree in biology and planned to become a botanist at the new colony. My admiration wasn’t so academic. Compared to her, I was a wannabe. I’d studied everything I could about living in the wild but had no real experience. Going out to live in the untamed wilderness would be my first test to see if I could take care of myself without my suffocating family getting in the way. I found myself telling her the truth about my trip. I’d run away from my parents without a word. I thought she’d tell me my plan was stupid. Instead, she encouraged me.

“I think it’s kind of brave when you think about it,” she said as she swirled a straw in her drink.

Of course, I knew I wouldn’t be alone for too long. _Knowing mom, she’ll hire someone to track me down. When they fail to convince me to come back, she’ll come down herself to do it._

The second time we hung out, it was my invitation. I wanted to call it a date but didn’t. There was this fear in the back of mind telling me that she’d say no. She’d think I was weird. Too rough around the edges. Maybe she already had a boyfriend at the colony. There were too many uncertainties for me to take the risk.

While we drank gross, watered down beer together, she told me what started her love of nature. She and her dad used to do volunteer work on her home planet for local nature preserves. I didn’t feel jealous when she talked about their close bond. I’d long ago accepted that things would never be that way for me. She had a soft spot for animals too. Her family rescued abused animals and fostered them until they could find a more permanent home.

By the end of the night, she convinced me I should do volunteer work for the new colony with her. Me, the guy who hated other people and was joining a colony to get away from society. But I could feel myself coming around to the idea. It wasn’t just that I wanted to please her. The way she described all the wonderful changes you could make to improve lives sold me on the whole idea.

I spent more time with her in those first few days than I’d spent with anyone for the past six months. _If people were more like her, I’d be a lot more sociable._

Three days before we were supposed to leave, an emergency lockdown activated across the entire station. Alarms blared as we were told through intercoms to stay in our apartments.

Ever since I was a young boy, I’d learned to curb my emotions. Being the son of overbearing parents meant every little thing I said or did would be misconstrued. I had become proud of my cool and collected nature. It helped me be quick on my feet and it had gotten me out of a lot of trouble before. This time was no different. I patiently waited in my apartment, listening to the news on the station.

Journalists on the radio station reported on the whispers of a serial killer lurking in the dark corners of the Sevastopol.  Reports were coming in that people were going missing on the station. There were a dozen people marked missing in the last week alone. The Colonial Marshal Bureau issued an evasive statement which gave no answers to people’s concerns. Then, to make matters worse, the vehicle bay put on emergency lockdown. The last thing I heard before the radio cut out was that not even the emergency vehicles could be reached.

Outside my door, I could hear people ignoring their orders by running out into the halls. The electricity struggled to remain functionally on my apartment unit’s floor. When all the lights turned off, people really descended into panic. Gunfire rang out in the evening. At some point in the night, the alarm turned off and the intercom system went dead.

On the second day, I set out on a journey to find her. There were two housing complexes on Sevastopol. I was in A, she was in B. Fortunately, they were all in Solomons Habitation Tower, one of the three towers of the station. Unfortunately, that meant I had to travel down fifty floors.

I found an elevator that seemed fairly untouched by the chaos of the day before. Sector B encompassed floors fifty to one. _Floor 12, unit 1209._ I had the numbers memorized. The elevator took me down ten flights of stairs before coming to a halt. _You’ve got to be fucking kidding me._

The lights flickered before shutting off. _That’s the last time I use an elevator here._ I felt along the ceiling in the darkness until my hands reached a latch. With a quick push, I shoved open the emergency hatch. I pulled myself on top of the elevator and looked around. The tunnel has thin yellow lights all along the corners which helped me see a little. I could make out a metal ladder on one of the sides of the tunnel which led down into the depths of the station.

_I don’t know why I’m even doing this. She’s probably long gone from her unit._ I made the slow descent towards whatever floor I’d end up on. The danger I was in didn’t bother me as much as it should have. One slip and I’d fall to my death. _Claude doesn’t seem like the type to ignore safety protocol though. My guess is she’s still holed up there waiting for help which will never come._

Ever since the intercoms shut off, I had a sneaking suspicion we were on our own. Where were the ships that would evacuate us in this kind of situation? Why would the marshals try to seclude us to our apartments without any explanation? The station was dangerous and the longer we stayed on it, the smaller our chances of survival got. If _Sevastopol had a big crime rate before, I hate to know the kind of horrible things people are doing now._

The doors were already open at the bottom. A crowbar sat on the floor, giving me a clue as to what happened. It took me a moment to find a map of the area. They had them posted on the walls around every corner. An estimate of three thousand people could live on Sevastopol. People were sure to get lost in its labyrinth of halls.

I’d ended up on floor 1. _Great. Back up I go._ This time, I used the stairs.

When I finally got to floor 12, I found the place a wreck. The power at least worked on her floor, though who knew how long that would last. Debris and luggage had been scattered through the halls. I had to turn back several times because parts of the halls were completely blocked off. The people near my unit hadn’t been this desperate. _It’s like people barricaded off areas down here. Why?_

I got to the hall with her apartment and stopped dead in my tracks. In the center of the hallway, surrounded by a pool of blood, was the mangled corpse of one of her neighbors. _What if she’s dead?_ The thought hadn’t entered my mind until that moment. Things had gotten a lot more dangerous than I anticipated. Sure, I heard the gunfire, but I assumed though were warning shots. Death had been so close to her, but did she evade it? _I’m going to find her and we are going to escape. That’s just how things are going to be._

I tried her door but it was locked. _That’s a good sign. I think?_ I knocked a few times, but she still didn’t answer. Dread filled the pit of my stomach. “Claude?” I called out with a quiet voice. If any dangerous people were lurking, I didn’t want them to hear me. The less we interacted with the other passengers, the better.

“Jake?” I heard her voice from the other side of the door.

“Yeah, it’s me.” My heart did a flip. I tried to keep my voice steady. There were no words I could use to convey just how happy I was to hear her. The door flew open and she threw her arms around me.

“God, I’m so happy to see you,” she said, her voice muffled as she buried her head into my shoulder. The shock of her embrace wore off and I hugged her tight. People normally didn’t get that close to me. As much as I hated to admit it, the feeling was nice.

“Let’s go inside,” I said, leading her back into the apartment. I shut the door behind us and pressed my ear against the door. No noise. Too quiet for such a large housing complex.

Almost all the lights in the apartment were turned off except for the living room lamp. Her unit, just like mine, had the same beige walls and gray carpet. She sat down on the sofa and wrapped her arms around herself.

“What happened down here? It looks like a damn war zone,” I asked as I sat down next to her.

“I don’t know,” she said. Her eyes were puffy and red. She’d been crying a lot, judging from the tissues that littered the floor. “There were people shouting and I could hear… I don’t know how to describe it. It’s like someone was chasing them through the halls. I heard a guy outside my door and he made this scream like I’ve never heard before. And then there were these horrible noises.” She stopped, unable to continue.

I wanted to comfort her but had no clue how to do it. I rested my hand on her shoulder. “I didn’t mean to make you relive all that. I’m sorry,” I said. Whoever came for her neighbor was going to have to fuck off, because I wasn’t going to let them get her. _Things got way worse down here. I don’t know how she managed to stay sane trapped in here listening to all that._

“And then there was something in the ceiling,” she whispered. “I thought it was a passenger, at first, but it moved so fast. I heard it scuttering around all last night and this morning.”

_Okay, maybe she didn’t stay all that sane. That’s okay. We’ll handle that later. Priority one: get the hell out of here before things get worse._ I could see she had most of her stuff still packed in her duffle bag.

“Listen to me, you’re not going to like this but we have to get out of here. If help comes, it’s not going to find us hidden away in these apartments,” I said.

“The marshals said-” she started.

“Fuck the marshals,” I interrupted. “Don’t you think it’s a little weird that they stopped broadcasting?”

“They lost power,” she said.

“Then that’s even more reason to get out here. They might have already given orders for us to evacuate and no one heard them.” _Why do people so blindly trust these kinds of organizations? They don’t care if we live or die. The only thing that matters to them is self-preservation._

“It’s dangerous out there! We shouldn’t go out until we get word that it’s safe,” she said as she crossed her arms.

“Why would they tell us to hide down here where no one could get us?” I asked.

“Why would they try to hurt us?” She asked.

I felt like a conspiracy theorist as I explained my distrust. “Because something is very wrong on this station and they are trying to quarantine it. There’s a murderer on board and they want the killer to attack us instead of them.” I sighed, rubbing my head. “I know it sounds crazy but I’ve dealt with these people before. My family has done business with Seegson Corporation and they aren’t to be trusted.”

“Seegons?”

“They own Sevastopol,” I explained. “My family’s corporation owns several stations. I know the safety protocols in these kinds of situations. If there’s no help within a reasonable distance, they order evacuation with the emergency vehicles in the vehicle bay. They have pre-programmed ships that can travel to the nearest station or planetary outpost via autopilot. The fact they didn’t order evacuation is suspicious as hell. We need to get on one of those vehicles and get help.”

She sighed and looked up at the ceiling. I could tell she was mulling it over in her head. “Fine, let me pack my stuff up.” She walked into the back room, presumably the bedroom if it was the same layout as my apartment. After a few minutes, she came back with her bag slung over her shoulder. She fiddled with the clasp of a gold locket that hung around her neck.

“I’m only doing this because I trust you,” she said, waving at the door. _I will work my hardest to be deserving of that trust._

We headed toward the tram station. I noticed her shudder as we walked past the body in the hall. We didn’t hear any signs of life as we passed through the halls, nor did I notice anything change. If someone was scuttering through the ceiling like Claude claimed, they were gone. Neither of us spoke until we reached the tram. I felt on edge the whole time, like someone was going to attack us if we made any sign of our presence. I felt like she sensed that too. She stuck close beside me. Her eyes darted around the corridors, watching for movement. My pace quickened as I saw the glowing lights of the tram flicker.

“Where are we headed?” She asked as we boarded. It was strange to see the tram so empty.

“Lorenz SysTech Spire. Uh, it’s where the Seegson Communications Observation Deck is,” I explained.

Her brows furrowed as she frowned. “I thought we were going to the docks.”

“The marshals put them into an emergency lockdown,” I said.

“That’s… weird. Why would they do that?”

“Good question,” I said. “Now do you get why I don’t trust them?”

“That’s going to make things so much harder for us.” I could see the way hope faded from her eyes.

“Not necessarily,” I reassured her. “I think if we go to Comms we can talk to the androids about lifting the lockdown. I’ve worked with Seegson droids before. They aren’t very smart. It should be easy to do.”

We stood in silence for a while. _This isn’t the good kind of silence. It’s not peaceful like it silence should be._ “That’s uh, a pretty necklace,” I remarked.

“Oh, it’s my mom’s locket,” she said, smiling to herself. “She gave it to me before I moved away. I wear it whenever I need good luck. Right now, I think some luck would come in handy.”

_I could watch her smile for hours and still be entranced. I’ve never felt like this about anyone before._ The doors opened and she walked out. Sometimes when I looked at her, I got the strangest feeling of deja vu. It was like I’d known her my whole life even though we’d just met.

I followed her out into the tram station. Lockers lined the walls and staircases could be seen at each end of the room. A little sign for the Communications Observation Deck pointed to the right. They handled all communication with the outside world as well as within the station.

We followed the signs. Occasionally we heard shouts coming from one of the distant halls, but never any visual sign of people. _Let’s keep it that way._ We reached an elevator that led up to the observation deck. She walked inside but I hesitated. “The last elevator I was in shut down midway through the trip,” I said.

“Do you know where the staircase is?” She asked.

“No,” I admitted.

“Well… I’m not sure what else we can do,” she said. I got the feeling she wanted to get everything done as quickly as possible. I stepped in and she pressed the button. The elevator rattled several times and I held my breath. She put her hand on my arm. “It’s okay, Jake.”

“If this thing stops, it’s going to be a long climb up,” I sighed. Her hand didn’t move away. She looked up at the flickering lights, staring as if she was trying to will them to stay powered. I felt so extremely aware of her presence. The way her body leaned toward me. The way her thumb caressed my arm as if to soothe me. Even when the doors finally opened, it took her a few seconds to let go. _Does she like me or is she being nice? Would it be creepy to say something? It’s been so long since I broke up with Claire. I don’t know how any of this works._

We walked out onto the observation deck. The walls were made of impenetrable windows, all overlooking the vastness of space. I found myself a little disappointed that there was no ship in view. No saviors to come to the rescue. There were rows of desks with various terminals. About a dozen androids were on the deck, unaware of our presence. I noticed a sign marked “security” pointing to a set of doors, locked with a blinking red light.

Seegson androids were infamous for their poor intelligence and soulless appearance. When they were in an idle state, they’d spout out Seegson propaganda that only made them seem more unnerving. I couldn’t imagine trying to live on a station full the of the things.

“I’ll handle this,” I said. I didn’t think she was incapable. I just knew how finicky Seegson droids could be. They only understood simple commands.

I approached the nearest one and tapped it on the shoulder. It turned toward me. The white rubber skin illy fit its metal body. All the other androids in the room stopped moving. The distinct sound of typing came to a halt. It moved its head up and down as if sizing me up.

“I’d like to be let into security,” I said with an even voice. _Couldn’t they have at least given them pupils? They look possessed._ The only way to tell what it was staring at was the two LED lights that shined underneath its white, plastic eyes. It stood still, processing my words.

“You’re not supposed to be here,” it responded with a robotic voice. Its lips didn’t move as it spoke. The words came out of a speaker underneath its rubber skin. Its permanent, deadpan expression made it hard to understand the tone of the conversation. However, when its eyes flickered red, I had a pretty good idea that something was wrong.

I struggled to come up with some explanation. All androids were required by law to be programmed to protect humans. Even in the case where they had to take someone down, they had to do so without causing injury. “There’s an emergency lockdown in place preventing people from being evacuated. If you don’t lift the lockdown, people will die,” I said. _That should trigger their guardian programming._

I could tell by the short pause that it had processed my speech. “This is a safety breach, and will not be tolerated,” it said.

_Oh good, that went easier than--_

It grabbed me by the throat and shoved me against the nearest wall. As his metal fingers clamped down on my neck, cutting off air, I tried to shove him away.

“You are becoming hysterical. Please calm down,” it said before slamming my head into the wall. My vision blurred. Blood ran through my air from the gash at the back of my head. My lungs burned as I struggled for air.

The sound of metal hitting its skull rang out. It dropped me and stumbled back. Claude swung a metal pipe at it again, hitting it in its chest. She dented its face in from the first blow, no doubt breaking the parts needed for vision. It stumbled towards her with its arms out.

“I’m going to catch you,” it garbled through broken speakers. Behind it, the other androids began to approach at a brisk walk. Their eyes shined red and generic tones of disapproval came from the crowd.

I scrambled to my feet, nearly falling over in the process. My ears were ringing. My sense of balance was gone. _We have to get out of here. She’s not going to be able to hold off all of them._ On one of the walls near the security room, I spotted a closed vent. Its sensors must have recognized my presence when I approached because the vent slid open.

“Claude!” My voice croaked as called to her. Even breathing stung.

She took a few steps backward, still facing the androids. They didn’t seem to care that she was swinging her pipe at them. She aimed for the one closest to her. It grabbed the pipe and ripped it out of her hands.

“Fuck,” I hissed, running toward her.

The android lifted the pipe up. “You and I are going to have a talk about safety.” I grabbed her hand and pulled her back just before the pipe could collide with her shoulder. It hit the wall beside us, bouncing back.

“Running causes accidents,” another android said from the back of the crowd.

“Go!” I pushed her into the vent and stumbled in after her. I felt one of their hands graze against my leg as I crawled in. A horrible scene of being ripped apart by the dozen soulless machines flashed across my eyes.

“There’s an opening ahead,” she said. Light flooded into the vent as it opened in front of us. She crawled out and turned to help me through.

A fluorescent ceiling light illuminated the windowless office. It flickered at strobe-like intervals, making the room feel dim and cramped. Monitors for various portions of Lorenz SysTech Spire were displayed in front of a swivel chair. A camera for right outside our door showed a few androids patrolling the area. I motioned for Claude to be quiet. _Are they smart enough to figure out we are in here? All they would have to do is unlock this office and we’ll be dead. They have the controls to do it._

When it became clear that they were indeed stupid, I started to search the room for anything useful. _A gun or even another crowbar would be nice right about now._ I found a few pairs of wireless headsets but nothing useful for defense. Claude pulled a medkit off the wall.

“Sit down,” she nodded her head to the chair.

It took me a few seconds to figure out why. “Oh, no. Really, I’m fine,” I assured her.

She rolled her eyes. “You have blood all over your face.”

The wound at the back of my head still ached. I started to deny any injury but she pushed me into the chair.

“You’ll feel better when I’m done, I promise,” she said as she pulled out some gauze and disinfectant. She pulled on a pair of rubber gloves. Her fingers moved through my hair until she found the source of all the bleeding. “Now I see why you let your hair look so wild all the time. It’s a beast,” she teased.

I barely noticed the sting of the medicine. All I could think about was how gentle she was being. Even after being attacked by a bunch of rogue androids, she kept a cool head. “I’ll admit it’s not as pretty as yours.” The words came out before I had a chance to censor myself. She blushed. _I need to move the conversation on before she realizes how bad I am at flirting._ “Thanks for patching me up.”

She pulled the gloves off. “You saved me. I have to return the favor somehow.”

I examined the monitors. Androids were patrolling in almost every area. “I guess we know why the intercom system went down. If the androids are attacking people, it would be hard for the marshals to come back here and boot everything up.”

She looked over the monitors and tapped her finger on one of them. “Is that the vehicle bay?”

On the small colorless monitor, I could see an oscillated view the large bay. Several emergency vehicles were left docked, waiting for survivors to evacuate. She shuddered as the camera panned over a large pool of black liquid. _No body, so that’s a good sign._ _Maybe it’s just oil. Not everything has to be guts and gore._

“How do we shut off the lockdown?” I asked.

“Wait, you don’t know?”

“I don’t know how any of this works. I’m not even sure there’s a way to turn off the lockdown here.”

“Then why did we come here?” She asked, placing her hands on her hips. I could sense some annoyance.

“I don’t know. This seemed like the best guess.” She shot me an exacerbated look. “Listen, just because I present myself like I know everything doesn’t mean I actually do. This is the main security center for the entire tower. I’m sure we can find a way to shut it off from here.”

I avoided her stare by poking at one of the keyboards. She turned to a separate terminal, murmuring something under her breath. After about ten minutes of searching, she tapped me on the shoulder. “I think I found it. According to this map, the only way to override the emergency lockdown is through the terminal outside the vehicle bay.”

My irritation skyrocketed. Not at her, but at myself. “Well, shit. We came here for nothing.”

“Maybe not. I don’t know about you, but I had no idea how to get to the vehicle bay until I found this map, so that’s useful.” She scrolled through a safety protocol document. “It says we need a code generated by this office to turn olockdownck down.” She hesitated.

“Why do I get the feeling you’re about to drop some bad news on me.”

“One of us has to go to the other office and submit a request for the code. Someone has to stay behind and authorize the request. That’s the only way the terminals will generate one.”

We stood in quiet for a moment. _There’s got to be a better way to do this. Why did they design this system to be so difficult?_

“I’ll do it,” she said as she grabbed one of the headsets off the table.

“Uh, I’m not letting you go down there by yourself,” I said, taking the other headset and putting it on my head.

“You’re injured, Jake,” she argued.

“I know my way around this wreck of station better than you.”

“What are you talking about? We’ve both been here the same amount of time.” She caught the lie. “We don’t have time for this. Just sit at the monitor and navigate for me. Once I get the doors unlocked, you can come down to the vehicle bay and we’ll both escape together.”

I moved in front of the vent entrance. “No.”

“Jake.” She gritted her teeth. It was strange to see the normally sweet woman get pissed off. I felt guilty for irritating her, but I wasn’t going to budge.

“I can’t navigate for you.”

She rolled her eyes. “Oh really? Why is that.”

“I can’t read.”

She stared at me in silence. We’d talked about our favorite books for an hour over drinks at the bar. She loved mysteries, I loved classics. We both hated dark comedies, albeit for different reasons. I thought they were needlessly edgy and she didn’t like people making jokes about others’ pain.

“This isn’t the time to be funny.”

“I’m not trying to be.”

“I don’t understand why you think I--” she stopped and shook her head. “You know what? Fine. If it means so much to you, I’ll stay here with the creepy horde of androids at the door,” she huffed. She plopped into the chair and turned away from me.

The words she left unspoken bothered me. _Does she think this is about her capability?_ I’d made myself seem like a real jackass. Leaving her like that didn’t seem right. “I’m not doing this because I think you’re incapable of hitting a few keys on a keyboard.” I couldn’t tell her why I was doing it. The fear of her getting hurt out there made it impossible for me. I couldn’t stand by and let her risk that.

She ignored me. _We can finish this argument once we’re off the station._

I made sure the office was secure before I left through the vents. “If, for whatever reason, those androids unlock the door, crawl into the vents and wait for them to leave. They can’t get to you in there.” She nodded but kept her eyes focused on the unmoving screen. “I’ll, uh, see you down there.”

The vent doors slid open. My heart pounded at the thought of being attacked as soon as I exited them. _The androids probably went back to their stations… right?_ I’d seen on the monitors the way they patrolled through the hallways. I didn’t even have a weapon to defend myself, and this time Claude wouldn’t be able to come to my rescue.

I felt two slender arms spin me around and pull me into a hug. Her curly hair brushed against my face. She smelled like flowers. _Lavender, maybe? Definitely heaven._ “I’ve got your back out there,” she promised.

“I know,” I said. The tension of the situation we’d been put in should have made me uneasy. As soon as she touched me, though, I felt a strange sense of calm. _Everything is going to be alright. We’re going to look out for each other_.

With other women, I’d never been so cautious about making moves on them. My dad had pushed me at rich heiresses many times, and usually they fell for the cheesy facade I put on. With Claude, it was different. I didn’t want to screw things up. I had to be genuine, and being genuine meant being vulnerable. I brushed my hand against her hair and then kissed her forehead. She looked neither surprised or disgusted. She smiled and planted a kiss on my cheek. I risked one last glance back at her. She’d been through hell and still managed to look beautiful.

I entered through the vents and crawled all the way out. The androids didn’t notice as I sneaked past them and towards the elevator that delivered us there. Once I got inside, I heard her speak through the headphones. “You can hear me, right?”

“Yeah. Do you hear me? We should have tested this before I left.”

“Well, thankfully it works. You need to go down three floors.”

The elevator doors opened, revealing yet more disaster. A broken android littered the floor. Graffiti covered the walls. Most of it cursed out the marshalls. “Oh, I see you!” I looked up to see a small camera panning around the room. I waved just to humor her. “You’ll want to go straight, all the way until you see a sign for a medical wing.”

The silence unnerved me as I walked. The spray painted letters on the walls made the atmosphere feel hostile, even if it wasn’t directed at me. I couldn’t stand it anymore. In that moment, however, all I wanted to do was hear her voice. It made me feel needy and weak, but at the moment I didn’t care. “What’s your favorite color?” I asked.

“Huh? Oh, I guess it’s green, probably.”

“Favorite food?”

The headset went quiet for a moment. “I eat a lot of pasta,” she admitted. “What’s with all these questions?”

“Do you really have to ask?” I said, shooting a look at a nearby camera. _I’m terrified. Don’t make me admit that to you._

“You told me you hated small talk,” she said, referencing one of the first conversations we had. “You said it was boring.”

“Learning more about you will never be boring to me,” I said.

“Very smooth.” I could hear the smile in her voice. “Hey, be careful up ahead. I see some movement in the medical wing. Looks like other passengers though, not survivors. Do you… Do you think we should get them to help?”

“Hell no,” I said as I approached the end of the hall. To the left, I could see the medical wing. Muffled shouts came from behind it’s locked doors. Gunfire broken out before a blood curdling scream got abruptly cut off. I ducked beside pallet of boxes. “Claude?” I whispered.

“I… There’s a bunch of people firing up at the ceiling. Oh god,” she said before cutting off. I wanted to ask her what was wrong but no noise could come out. The sound of something large stomping through the corridor made me freeze. Too loud to be a passenger. Too fast. “There’s so many bodies I… I think I just saw something pass by the camera?” _What do you mean you THINK? You either know or you don’t know!_

A loud thud above sent me sprinting across the hall. “Jake, what’s going on?” I heard her panicked voice in my ears. “Jake?!” The vents in the ceiling rattled as something slid through. _She used the word scampering. Scampering brings to mind something small, like a mouse. This is not a god damn mouse._

I didn’t have time to read the sign above me that listed the vehicle bay. “I’m going right, yeah?” I asked, out of breath.

“Yes! But seriously Jake, what’s going on?”

The noise above shot off in another direction. I slowed down to a stop, listening for any signs of the creature. _It’s still nearby. I shouldn’t run anymore. It might hear me._ “There’s something in the vents,” I whispered.

She didn’t say anything for a moment. “Maybe you should come back up here.”

“What? No. I’m so close.” _There’s no way in hell I’m staying another second on this station._

“I’m looking through the camera up ahead and…” she paused. “There’s a body right outside the security checkpoint. Jake, there’s no way a human being did that.” Her voice quivered.

“Hey, it’s going to be okay. We’ve got this, remember?” I reminded her. It felt weird to reassure her, considering I was the one stuck in the depths of a nightmare.

“Y-yeah,” she said. _Directions, Claude. Just tell me where to go._ “Keep going right. There’s a corner office with really big windows. That’s the one with the terminal.”

Ignoring the rumbling vents, I moved down the hall with caution. The emergency power lights cast an eerie glow through the halls. I tried to stick to the shadows until I finally saw the vehicle bay doors. Even in the dim light, I could see someone laying at the foot of the doors up ahead.

His expression made me feel ice in my veins. He laid sumped against the doors with a pattern of splattered blood behind him. His hands clutched onto the guts leaking out of his abdomen. When his eyes moved to my face, I found myself wishing more than anything that he was dead. My heart pounded in my chest. He opened his mouth to speak and coughed up blood instead. _If I wasn’t going to have PTSD before, I am now._

I walked into the security checkpoint beside him, trying to ignore the blood that splashed at my feet. The checkpoint doors were electronic and, thankfully, had a control panel that allowed me to lock them from the inside.

Everything about the room left me feeling vulnerable. The bright lights made me feel like I was in a spotlight. The glass windows overlooked the shadowy hallway where people should have been. I could still hear the damn thing in the vents moving around, as if taunting me. There was a single terminal beside the glass, probably used to check people in. As I turned it on, I couldn’t help but notice how perfectly in view the dying man outside was. He turned his head and stared at me.

“I think maybe I should come up and get you, once all of this is done. It’s not safe to travel alone,” I whispered.

“Yeah,” she said. Her voice cracked.

There were various command prompts on the monitor. _Check in? No. Check out? No. Baggage claim? Come on, just give me what I want already._ Finally, the list scrolled down enough and I saw the code request command.

**“Submit a request to lift lockdown? YES or NO.** ” The robotic sound from the speakers -- much like the voice of a Seegson android -- made me jump.   _Yes, obviously, now shut the fuck up._

“I sent the request in.” A pop-up appeared with large green letters asking for a code. A timer beside it began counting down from five minutes.

“You did?” She asked.

“Yeah, it wants a code now.” A minute passed by. “Claude?”

“Uh, I was kind of expecting it to just flash the code on the screen or something,” she said. I could hear the sound of papers being ruffled around through the speakers.

The sound in the vents grew louder. I looked out through the windows and into the darkness. The man by the doors still stared at me. I couldn’t tell if he was breathing anymore.

A crash from outside made me scramble to the floor. I tucked myself under the desk with the terminal. My heart skipped a beat at the sound of hiss from outside. _Christ, it’s crawled out of the vents._ I didn’t dare risk peeking from my hiding spot. I couldn’t move even if I wanted too.

“I found it,” Claude said. Her voice scared the shit out of me.

“Not. Now.”

“What was that? I can’t hear you,” she said. “Actually, I can’t even see you. Hold on, I’ll-” She stopped talking. The footsteps grew louder until they were on the opposite side of the wall I hid by. I held my breath until it felt like my lungs were going to burst. It moved around the corner and headed back down the hallway. “It’s back by the medical wing,” she said. “Jake, we have a minute left.”

_Shit._ “Code. Now.” Coherent sentences were asking for too much.

“It’s heading back towards you,” she whispered.

_Idon’tgiveaflyingfuckwhereitisIwanttoleaverightnowgivemethedamncode._

“Now!” I hissed.

“SG109.”

I lifted my head up to the level of the keyboard. Each tap of the keys felt too loud.

**“SG109. Processing command.”** _Shitfuckshuttheshitup.Ohmygodwhywouldyoudothistome._ I fell backwards, nearly knocking my headset off.

“What was that?” Claude asked.

“The termi-” I started to stutter. We both went silent, probably for different reasons. She was probably looking through the camera feed from the hallway outside the office. I, too, could see what lurked right outside the glass.

I almost didn’t notice it in the darkness. It’s muted black skin blended well with the shadows. I could barely make out its skeletal frame which looked oddly intricate and delicate for a creature who had caused so much carnage.

The creature had no eyes or real facial features other than razor-sharp teeth that glinted from a drooling mouth. The light reflected off the smooth surface of its elongated and cylindrical head. It turned back and forth before pointing it’s mouth directly at me. I didn’t need to see eyes to sense I was its target.

_It’s too late to hide._ The panic in my mind had boiled into those five simple words. They echoed through my thoughts and destroyed everything in their path. The calm and collected side of me, which had been silent for so long, finally stood up and took charge. _It’s too late for me but it’s not too late for her._

My legs shook as I stood up. The creature moved to the door, testing to see if it would open. From the sound of its steps, I would have thought it to be a graceless bulk of muscles. Instead, it glided through the darkness with elegance. I half expected it to break the door down. When it the door didn’t open, it moved back to the glass. _It’s smart enough to know the doors are motion activated. It’s only a matter of time before it breaks the glass._

I could hear Claude freaking out on the other side of the call. Her words melted together from fear and crying.

The creature crouched to the ground and then pounced at the glass. It gracelessly bounced off the surface, causing a crack to form down the middle. I pushed my back against the wall, bracing for the moment it’d crash through. Within seconds it had scrambled back to its feet. Things were moving so quickly, I didn’t have enough time to do what I needed to do.

“Claude, listen to me,” I said with a firm voice. “You need to step away from the monitors. Don’t look at them ever again. Hang up the call, head to the vehicle bay as quietly as possible, and get the fuck out of here.”

“Nonono, I can’t do this, Jake I need you, I--”

“Claude,” I started, “there’s no time for this. Hang up. Get to the vehicle bay. Don’t even look my direction when you get down here, okay? Please. Don’t let me die in vain. I did this because I love you. Now go.”

**“Processing complete. Lockdown has been lifted.** ”

It hit the glass again, almost shattering it. I could hear it growl with irritation as it scrambled to its feet. “I love you too, Jake,” she said through sobs.

The line clicked and then went dead. _Good. She won’t have to hear me die._ I tossed the headset to the floor.

The creature crouched down once more. The spiderweb of cracks had no chance against its weight. My heart raced for what would be the last time. There was no point in wondering if things could have gone differently, though the thought crossed my mind. As the creature flew through the shattered glass, I couldn’t help but think that, to protect her, I’d gladly do it all over again.

**Author's Note:**

> Thank you for reading the very first one-shot I've ever done! I am, admittedly, quite proud of this.  
> If you want to request any Dead by Daylight or Alien Isolation fics, send me an ask at https://theanxiouspeaches.tumblr.com/


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